Zoning board approves variance allowing Hamilton Animal Hospital to consolidate into adjacent suite

The Clawson Zoning Board of Appeals on Thursday approved a variance to allow Hamilton Animal Hospital to expand its operations into an adjacent suite at 1523 through 1537 North Main Street, a move that keeps the building's exterior footprint unchanged while allowing interior demolition and upgrades.

The board voted 3-0 to grant the variance from the setback requirement in Section 4.29(b) after hearing a planner's presentation that the combined clinic would remain within the existing footprint and would not extend closer to the neighboring residentially zoned property. Chair Cindy Smith opened a public hearing, and no members of the public spoke.

Planner Andy said the closest point of the combined building is "about 80.5 feet," then "juts down to 85.5 feet," with "most of the building [at] 95.1 feet" from the residential district. He told the board the proposed change would extend an existing nonconformity rather than create a new encroachment. Andy also noted the site plan reviewed and conditionally approved by the Planning Commission on Aug. 12 listed the variance as a condition of final site-plan approval.

Applicant Deanna Newland, who identified her address as 1537 North Main, told the board the consolidation would let the clinic add exam rooms and bring the facility into compliance with building and accessibility codes. "It is currently kind of one solid building, but, of course, separated into the two suites, so we will be occupying everything," Newland said. She said the interior of both suites will be substantially rebuilt for ADA compliance and more efficient circulation; she later told the board the combined clinic will expand from three exam rooms to seven exam rooms plus a euthanasia room.

Board members asked staff whether the city had received any neighborhood correspondence; staff replied there had been none. Board members also discussed how the municipality's B-3 district treats some uses differently: retail uses that are permitted can sit closer to residential lots, while a veterinary clinic is reviewed as a special-land-use that triggers the Section 4.29(b) setback requirement.

The board's approval was conditioned on the Planning Commission's certificate of occupancy requirements. The motion listed conditions already included in the Planning Commission's approval: sealing, recoating and restriping the parking lot; submitting a building permit for new signage; and submitting building permits and plans for interior alterations that will follow code requirements.

Votes at a glance: - Motion to approve minutes of the July 17, 2025, meeting as amended — approved (motion carried; roll call indicated affirmative votes from the three members present). The minutes were amended to correct a typo concerning the wording about the public hearing date. - Variance request (Section 4.29(b)) for Hamilton Animal Hospital, 1523–1537 North Main Street — approved 3-0. The board found practical difficulties unique to the property, noted the building footprint would not change, and attached the Planning Commission's certificate-of-occupancy conditions. - Motion to adjourn meeting — approved.

What the board described as discussion-only items included clarification that the north portion of the building is a preexisting, legal nonconforming use and that the requested approval would not remove that status. Staff noted an existing masonry/split wall between the clinic's parking lot and the adjacent multifamily property is shown on the plan as 6 feet tall. No members of the public spoke during the public-hearing period.

The board met with only three of five members present; the chair told the applicant before the vote that any approval required an affirmative vote by all three present to meet the three-out-of-five threshold. The board's motion stated the hardship did not arise from the applicant's actions, noting the building dates to the 1940s and predated current standards.

Next steps listed by staff include issuance of building permits for the interior work and for new signage, completion of the parking-lot work required before certificate-of-occupancy, and final inspections. The Planning Commission's site-plan approval remains contingent on the ZBA variance being in place.